Mendoza Showcases His Talents At Indiana Pro Day

Fernando Mendoza was on a roll Wednesday at Indiana’s Pro Day. A roll of dimes that is!

Throwing to his Hoosier wideouts and running backs, the 2025 Heisman Trophy winner unleashed the accurate-yet-rifle-armed throwing arm that led Indiana to the 2025 CFP title.

Mendoza was joined by almost two dozen teammates who were performing in front of representatives from all 32 NFL teams, not to mention the more than 100 media members also on hand.

It was, essentially, a mass job interview for work in the NFL, although for Mendoza, he’s got the gig in the bag.

The Raiders are as much of a lock to take Mendoza with the first pick of the 2026 NFL Draft as the sun is to rise over the Las Vegas strip casinos each morning.

That said, Mendoza approached the Indiana Pro Day as a vehicle for helping his teammates shine and reiterated that Wednesday.

Mendoza completed almost all of his 56 passes in the Bloomington workout, connecting on my long aerials. The goal was to help his teammates impress future employers as much as he did.

“I feel like it went great,” Mendoza told media after the workout.“You know quarterbacks have passed, have done shorter pro days than that. However, I just wanted to make sure everybody could showcase their abilities in front of all 32 NFL teams and really run routes that are applicable to the timing we’re going to be running in the NFL.”

CBS Sports reporter Ryan Wilson was impressed by Mendoza’s throwing, writing: “It’s the kind of arm talent you don’t fully appreciate on tape — but standing 20 feet away, it’s glaring. The velocity, the ease, the quick release — it’s all real. In fact, his arm talent and trigger are closer to Cam Ward than, say, C.J. Stroud or Jayden Daniels. Throughout the session, his ball placement was consistent — on time, on target, right on the receiver’s face.”

Per NFL.com., representatives of the Las Vegas Raiders in attendance reached double digits and included GM John Spytek and first-year head coach Klint Kubiak.

Mendoza weighed in at 236 pounds, about 10 pounds heavier than he was at the recent NFL Combine, cutting an impressive frame after hard work in the weight room.

But not as impressive as his unrelenting work ethic and positive attitude.

”A lot of trainers, a lot of coaches talk about the rookie wall. That once you finish playing January 19, you go straight into training and you go all the way to next February, hopefully,” Mendoza told media after the workout. “But I love football. I’ve never burnt out. I’m never going to hit a rookie wall.”